Just weeks after Rachel Corrie of Olympia was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in the Gaza town of Rafah, Israeli forces nearly killed another U.S. peace activist on Saturday, 24-year-old Brian Avery.

He is reported to be in serious condition. He has regained consciousness and is able to communicate by writing messages. But his face is said to be shattered, with his tongue split in two.

Eyewitnesses and members of the International Solidarity Movement say Avery was shot by an Israeli tank. Israel said the shooting is under investigation.

Avery, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, had come out of his apartment building to investigate shots being fired on the streets when an armored personnel carrier rounded a corner, said Tobias Karlsson, 30, a member of the Palestinian-backed group from Stockholm, Sweden.

“We had our hands up and we were wearing vests that clearly identified us as international workers when they began firing,” Tobias told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. “Brian was shot in the face, and it looks like he was hit by a heavy caliber bullet because of the extent of the wound.”

• Tobias Karlsson, member of the International Solidarity Movement and eyewitness to the shooting of Brian Avery.

• Danny Muller, friend and former roommate of Brian Avery.Related link:

• International Solidarity Movement